Friday, October 4, 2013
Life Direction
Some of you have already heard and some of you were a huge part of me making the choice for what I know will make the happiest. I figured this was the best platform to tell anyone who doesn't know. I told everyone I was moving to Colorado to attend Culinary school. I thought a lot about it and talked with a few close friends and have come to the decision to instead move to Washington near Seattle to attend the Le Cordon Bleu Culinary school. There are multiple reasons for the change that I don't feel like sharing here. If you really want to.know you can.jut ask. So I'll be hanging out in California for a bit and then moving north to Seattle. I'm super excited! Thanks for listening or I suppose reading.
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Camp Reflection
As many of you know I've spent the last 22 months in Florida working at Camp E-Nini-Hassee, on Sept 23 I'll complete my 2 year commitment I made with the camp. What many of you don't know is that I have made the decision to leave camp. I will be moving to Colorado and starting culinary school at the Auguste Escoffier School of Culinary Arts in Boulder, CO. It's been a hard decision to make but I will be pursuing a passion of mine to become a Pastry Chef.
I have loved all of the opportunities I have had while I've been here, all of the great people I have come to know and all of the ways I have grown as a person through my job.
I meant to keep this blog more updated to keep everyone more up to speed on the fun things I've done but that never happened so I will now attempt to condense almost 2 years of my life into this post.
While at camp I have worked in 4 different groups with a lot of youth and co-chiefs. I went on 2 river trips on the Suwannee River (1 5 day trip back at the beginning of my time at camp and 1 15 day trip this past May). Both trips ended up being with my Ayukumkus group but 2 very different Ayukumkus and 2 very different trips. I also got to go on an 18 day backpack trip to North Carolina, Tennessee and Georgia and hike on part of the Appalachian Trail.
At camp I have met some of the best people I know. My co-chiefs. Each of us spend 2 years of our lives living in the woods and changing our lives and the lives of the people around us. I couldn't have made it through camp without them.
No matter how hard or stressful work/life was we always managed to figure out a way to have fun and learn to be as awesome as possible.
I look back and there are many memories from the past 22 months that I would like to forget and never think of again but there are more memories that I will cherish and smile when I think about.
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| Hiking on the AT |
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| Paddling down the Suwannee River |
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| Party Day 80's Flash Mob |
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| On top of the world, Atlanta, GA |
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| Goofing off at Big Shoals |
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| Waking up our kids on Christmas Day dressed as elves and Batman |
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| "Chief can I draw a mustache on your face?" Sure why not |
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| Ugly sweaters were in for the holidays |
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| Chiefs in the Woods family picture |
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Way down upon the Suwannee River
I spent 5 days paddling along the Suwannee River in Florida starting at Dowling Park and ending at Ruth Springs. It was a really short trip so we didn't really get a chance to work on anything with the girls. The trip was supposed to be 14 days but the river is so low right now that we couldn't do more than 5. 2 of the canoes got stuck anyway.
The trip was fun overall. We had 10 kids and 4 chiefs. Since it was only 5 days we didn't have time to evaluate stearning with the girls so the chiefs ended up sterning for the 32 miles we paddled. Sterning means steering the canoe. It was a long 32 miles.
It was beautiful though.
Overall the kids enjoyed the trip. We had some kids that were better paddlers then others. For example my first canoe had one girl who wasn't very strong and got tired really easily and the other girl didn't want to be on the trip so we were last all day. And on the other hand my second canoe had 2 girls who were really strong paddlers and were determined to be in front away from the other loud canoes so we were in front all day.
Our kids were very lazy and slow at getting things done for the first half of the trip. We didn't leave our first campsite until 12:15pm. We had been shooting for 11. Then we had 11 miles to paddle. We got to the next campsite super late and got the canoes emptied and cleaned pretty fast. We ended up eating dinner in the dark and setting up tents in the dark. The only light we had was from the 4 chiefs headlamps because the kids aren't allowed to have flashlights and we didn't bring lanterns with us. We stayed at a place called Lafayette Blue Springs
The third day the kids were a lot better about time goals. We paddled 10 miles a lot faster than the day before and got into our campsite around 3 or 4. We stayed in a river camp that night. It was super nice, all of the kids were behaving really well because it was a privilege to stay in the river camp and not pitch tents and use the flush toilets. They knew we could take away that privilege if they misbehaved too much. We were staying at Peacock Slough River Camp. Our camp hosts were super awesome!
The last night we stayed at Adams Tract River Camp. We were the only group staying there so it was really cool.
The last day we paddled about 3.2 miles to Ruth Springs. Camp had never been there before so we didn't know if it would be a good pull out spot or not. It turned out to be not so good. We had to carry all of the gear over the spring and up a flight of stairs and then carry the canoes as well. It was hard work but the kids worked hard and we got it all done fairly fast.
Okay some funny stories from the trip. So on the 3rd day when we were at Peacock Slough River Camp we ate lunch and then walked down to the gear tarp which was on the shore next to the river. We told the girls to sit in a waiting huddle while the chiefs went to evaluate. We walk a few feet away and turn around and some kids are sitting, some kids are standing next to the water throwing rocks and some are lying down. We're like really they didn't listen to us and then someone said I wonder how they would react if we just laid down. So the 4 of us collapsed in a heap on the ground and we look over and one kid is staring at us with her jaw on the ground in shock and a few of the others are like what are you doing. We just started laughing and couldn't stop. After a minute or 2 one girl got up and starting grabbing stuff and getting the other girls to grab things and they all marched past us in huff up the hill to the campsite. We were still having a fit of giggles watching them, one kids marched past with a dry back in each hand and one in her teeth. We were impressed to see that they grabbed everything that they needed and checked out crews without our prompting.
The next night inside crew was cooking what we called the All-American meal-they made mac and cheese, bbq chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, biscuits and candy yams. A ridiculous amount of food. They ended up dropping half the meal on the ground and picking it back up and at the same time they were making puppy chow for the last pow wow treat. Well apparently they dropped the chocolate at one point while they were trying to pour it into the bag so they scooped it off the ground back into the bag and then proceeded to lick the remaining chocolate off of the ground. I was on outside crew so I didn't see most of this happening but when they dropped the chocolate we heard the pan hit the ground and turned to see what was happening, the 2 chiefs on inside crew decided that jumping around making a lot of noise was the best way to distract us when in fact all it did was draw our attention more toward them.
Later that night after final pow wow we put the kids to bed and then evaluated outside by the fire. Unfortunately the fire was right in front on the building and our evaluating turned into laughing at everything that had happened over the 4 days of paddling. So were basically crying because we were laughing so hard and our kids were so mad, one kid came out on the porch and told us that we shouldn't be having any tones because it was time to go to sleep and we were making too much noise. We were probably laughing for 15 minutes, trying so hard to be quiet.
The wildlife on the trip was super lame. We saw turtles, birds and fish. Not one alligator, I was so disappointed, although most of the kids were relieved.
The trip was fun overall. We had 10 kids and 4 chiefs. Since it was only 5 days we didn't have time to evaluate stearning with the girls so the chiefs ended up sterning for the 32 miles we paddled. Sterning means steering the canoe. It was a long 32 miles.
It was beautiful though.
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| I didn't take any pictures myself so I had to get them off of Google. |
Our kids were very lazy and slow at getting things done for the first half of the trip. We didn't leave our first campsite until 12:15pm. We had been shooting for 11. Then we had 11 miles to paddle. We got to the next campsite super late and got the canoes emptied and cleaned pretty fast. We ended up eating dinner in the dark and setting up tents in the dark. The only light we had was from the 4 chiefs headlamps because the kids aren't allowed to have flashlights and we didn't bring lanterns with us. We stayed at a place called Lafayette Blue Springs
The third day the kids were a lot better about time goals. We paddled 10 miles a lot faster than the day before and got into our campsite around 3 or 4. We stayed in a river camp that night. It was super nice, all of the kids were behaving really well because it was a privilege to stay in the river camp and not pitch tents and use the flush toilets. They knew we could take away that privilege if they misbehaved too much. We were staying at Peacock Slough River Camp. Our camp hosts were super awesome!
The last night we stayed at Adams Tract River Camp. We were the only group staying there so it was really cool.
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| This is what the kids slept in with the MC, the other 3 chiefs slept in a tent in front. |
The last day we paddled about 3.2 miles to Ruth Springs. Camp had never been there before so we didn't know if it would be a good pull out spot or not. It turned out to be not so good. We had to carry all of the gear over the spring and up a flight of stairs and then carry the canoes as well. It was hard work but the kids worked hard and we got it all done fairly fast.
Okay some funny stories from the trip. So on the 3rd day when we were at Peacock Slough River Camp we ate lunch and then walked down to the gear tarp which was on the shore next to the river. We told the girls to sit in a waiting huddle while the chiefs went to evaluate. We walk a few feet away and turn around and some kids are sitting, some kids are standing next to the water throwing rocks and some are lying down. We're like really they didn't listen to us and then someone said I wonder how they would react if we just laid down. So the 4 of us collapsed in a heap on the ground and we look over and one kid is staring at us with her jaw on the ground in shock and a few of the others are like what are you doing. We just started laughing and couldn't stop. After a minute or 2 one girl got up and starting grabbing stuff and getting the other girls to grab things and they all marched past us in huff up the hill to the campsite. We were still having a fit of giggles watching them, one kids marched past with a dry back in each hand and one in her teeth. We were impressed to see that they grabbed everything that they needed and checked out crews without our prompting.
The next night inside crew was cooking what we called the All-American meal-they made mac and cheese, bbq chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, biscuits and candy yams. A ridiculous amount of food. They ended up dropping half the meal on the ground and picking it back up and at the same time they were making puppy chow for the last pow wow treat. Well apparently they dropped the chocolate at one point while they were trying to pour it into the bag so they scooped it off the ground back into the bag and then proceeded to lick the remaining chocolate off of the ground. I was on outside crew so I didn't see most of this happening but when they dropped the chocolate we heard the pan hit the ground and turned to see what was happening, the 2 chiefs on inside crew decided that jumping around making a lot of noise was the best way to distract us when in fact all it did was draw our attention more toward them.
Later that night after final pow wow we put the kids to bed and then evaluated outside by the fire. Unfortunately the fire was right in front on the building and our evaluating turned into laughing at everything that had happened over the 4 days of paddling. So were basically crying because we were laughing so hard and our kids were so mad, one kid came out on the porch and told us that we shouldn't be having any tones because it was time to go to sleep and we were making too much noise. We were probably laughing for 15 minutes, trying so hard to be quiet.
The wildlife on the trip was super lame. We saw turtles, birds and fish. Not one alligator, I was so disappointed, although most of the kids were relieved.
Monday, October 17, 2011
Dear insects and animals of Florida, you make my life hard.
Well I survived week 1. And let me tell you those girls certainly do not make it easy. But they say if you make it though your 2 year commitment in the woods you can do anything. Nothing will be harder.
Let me first start out with the list of animals I've seen so far. Wild Turkeys, Turtles (the first time i've ever seen a wild turtle), Racoons, an Armadillo, a lifetime supply of cockroaches, more Mosquitoes than i can count (I've been eaten alive by those buggers), numerous spiders, ants of all sizes, deer and staff dogs and my campsite has a resident cat who apparently likes to bite fingers (so far she's only licked mine).
Well this week was certainly full of new experiences and intense moments. Friday night while we were getting the kids into bed Ch. Jessie (my co-chief) was at tent 1 and they heard this shuffling sound and thought it was the cat except the cat was over in tent 2 with me and the other girls. After we tucked the kids into bed (we tuck in their bug nets so they don't get eaten by mosquitoes at night or attacked by spiders or cockroaches) Chief and I went to investigate, we found a pretty big raccoon hanging out in a palm tree, we guess that he had been fighting another one and ran it off. So then we are sitting waiting for nightwatch and of our girls says she hears something scratching or shuffling near her tent so Chief goes to investigate and it turns out it's an armadillo so she throws a stick at it to scare it off. After that's taken care of we are sitting waiting for nightwatch again and we hear this noise that sounds like palm fronds rubbing together, we walk over and see the same raccoon from before desperately trying to hold on to the palm tree it's sliding down. Which normally wouldn't be a big concern for us but if it would have fallen it would have fallen onto tent 1, causing a lot of hysterical girls. So we're standing watching it almost as if we are poised and ready to catch it but at the same time neither one of us is dumb enough to touch because it could have rabies we just felt like we needed to do something. Thankfully it got down with out falling and we were able to chase it away. Then nightwatch showed up so we got to go to bed.
So Monday was my first official full day in the woods. The morning started out well we did tent work. When a tent starts getting old and worn out they break it down and rebuild. Every group at camp took turns working on the different aspects and the whole thing was done by Friday. Which is awesome! Now we will only have 3 girls per tent instead of 5 and 4. This will cause less conflict in tent area. Case in point that night a conflict came up over the placing of a lantern. This small conflict escalated into a full blown problem because everyone was exhausted from working hard all morning. The other chief in group that night tried to move the group to the road and when one girl refused to move she called in the MCs (Master Counselors) to help calm the group down and resolve the problems that arose. (We move conflicts that have escalated to the point that this one did to the road to bring the conflict away from the living area. It's a way to show that camp is a safe place and we don't want the kids associating conflict with their living area because they may have encountered conflict in their homes.) After awhile with the MCs there we were able to move to the road and then after another bit of time we had to separate the group because one kid had reached her breaking point earlier in the conflict and wouldn't stop yelling or talking over everyone and refused to let herself be calmed down and a few others were feeding off of her making it so we couldn't get anyone to talk about what was going on. After we moved the group again we were able to after awhile get the kids to talk about what had happened and what was happening. We got the kids back into bed around 1:30 am.
To put that into some time perspective on a normal night the girls are in bed between 8:30 and 8:45. That night because it was one girls howling out (she was graduating the next day) the kid were in bed between 9:45 and 10. Then because of a huddle being called and the escalation that followed the kids went to sleep at 1:30. I think I went to sleep around 2. And we were still up at the same time the next morning. The kids get woken up at 7 to do chores before breakfast at 8:30.
Tuesday my kids thought I had quit because I missed lunch. Then that night at pow wow one of them complimented me on sticking with them after what had happened the night before. Apparently this group has scared off a couple of perspective chiefs because of long intense huddles.
Wednesday was a lot of meeting. We had our staff meeting and then our GTC meeting, so I spent most of the day in meeting and not with the kids. It was a nice break then when Ch. Jessie and I got back down trail the kids were sitting in a huddle with Ch. Disha who had been watching them. We then missed showers because of the huddle which I was okay with but some of the girls were upset over that. But we didn't have to pack out for dinner so they weren't as unhappy as they could have been.
Thursday we did pack out for our back lake trip. We spent Thursday night at the back lake to get the kids used to the routine we will be having on the river trip. It actually went pretty well overall. That night we had to huddle out twice because of tones while they were supposed to be going to sleep. One tent couldn't quite themselves down. In the morning, the routine is Chiefs take down their tent before we wake up the kids so we can help the kids pack up their stuff and take their tents down. But some of the girls were complaining that we were being too loud so we stopped and then waited until all of their stuff was packed up before we finished packing up our tent. They weren't happy about it but they got the point. It was a good lesson for them.
Friday I celebrated my 25th birthday at work. My kids sang to me in the morning and then the whole camp sang to me at dinner. It was nice.
Saturday we did more pack out stuff all day. We put the tents back up so they could dry out since it had rained Thursday night. And the kids washed the rest of the gear and packed up all of the food. In the afternoon we worked on packing their clothing. It was an incredibly long day, I think every kid complained at some point. I think we might have a little bit more stuff to do for packout tomorrow but then I think we're done.
I've spent my T.O. getting stuff I need for the river trip and speaking of that I really do need to pack.
This week is going to be pretty busy again with things happening at camp and we leave for the river on Friday. 5 days on the Suwannee River. It should be really good for the kids!
Let me first start out with the list of animals I've seen so far. Wild Turkeys, Turtles (the first time i've ever seen a wild turtle), Racoons, an Armadillo, a lifetime supply of cockroaches, more Mosquitoes than i can count (I've been eaten alive by those buggers), numerous spiders, ants of all sizes, deer and staff dogs and my campsite has a resident cat who apparently likes to bite fingers (so far she's only licked mine).
Well this week was certainly full of new experiences and intense moments. Friday night while we were getting the kids into bed Ch. Jessie (my co-chief) was at tent 1 and they heard this shuffling sound and thought it was the cat except the cat was over in tent 2 with me and the other girls. After we tucked the kids into bed (we tuck in their bug nets so they don't get eaten by mosquitoes at night or attacked by spiders or cockroaches) Chief and I went to investigate, we found a pretty big raccoon hanging out in a palm tree, we guess that he had been fighting another one and ran it off. So then we are sitting waiting for nightwatch and of our girls says she hears something scratching or shuffling near her tent so Chief goes to investigate and it turns out it's an armadillo so she throws a stick at it to scare it off. After that's taken care of we are sitting waiting for nightwatch again and we hear this noise that sounds like palm fronds rubbing together, we walk over and see the same raccoon from before desperately trying to hold on to the palm tree it's sliding down. Which normally wouldn't be a big concern for us but if it would have fallen it would have fallen onto tent 1, causing a lot of hysterical girls. So we're standing watching it almost as if we are poised and ready to catch it but at the same time neither one of us is dumb enough to touch because it could have rabies we just felt like we needed to do something. Thankfully it got down with out falling and we were able to chase it away. Then nightwatch showed up so we got to go to bed.
So Monday was my first official full day in the woods. The morning started out well we did tent work. When a tent starts getting old and worn out they break it down and rebuild. Every group at camp took turns working on the different aspects and the whole thing was done by Friday. Which is awesome! Now we will only have 3 girls per tent instead of 5 and 4. This will cause less conflict in tent area. Case in point that night a conflict came up over the placing of a lantern. This small conflict escalated into a full blown problem because everyone was exhausted from working hard all morning. The other chief in group that night tried to move the group to the road and when one girl refused to move she called in the MCs (Master Counselors) to help calm the group down and resolve the problems that arose. (We move conflicts that have escalated to the point that this one did to the road to bring the conflict away from the living area. It's a way to show that camp is a safe place and we don't want the kids associating conflict with their living area because they may have encountered conflict in their homes.) After awhile with the MCs there we were able to move to the road and then after another bit of time we had to separate the group because one kid had reached her breaking point earlier in the conflict and wouldn't stop yelling or talking over everyone and refused to let herself be calmed down and a few others were feeding off of her making it so we couldn't get anyone to talk about what was going on. After we moved the group again we were able to after awhile get the kids to talk about what had happened and what was happening. We got the kids back into bed around 1:30 am.
To put that into some time perspective on a normal night the girls are in bed between 8:30 and 8:45. That night because it was one girls howling out (she was graduating the next day) the kid were in bed between 9:45 and 10. Then because of a huddle being called and the escalation that followed the kids went to sleep at 1:30. I think I went to sleep around 2. And we were still up at the same time the next morning. The kids get woken up at 7 to do chores before breakfast at 8:30.
Tuesday my kids thought I had quit because I missed lunch. Then that night at pow wow one of them complimented me on sticking with them after what had happened the night before. Apparently this group has scared off a couple of perspective chiefs because of long intense huddles.
Wednesday was a lot of meeting. We had our staff meeting and then our GTC meeting, so I spent most of the day in meeting and not with the kids. It was a nice break then when Ch. Jessie and I got back down trail the kids were sitting in a huddle with Ch. Disha who had been watching them. We then missed showers because of the huddle which I was okay with but some of the girls were upset over that. But we didn't have to pack out for dinner so they weren't as unhappy as they could have been.
Thursday we did pack out for our back lake trip. We spent Thursday night at the back lake to get the kids used to the routine we will be having on the river trip. It actually went pretty well overall. That night we had to huddle out twice because of tones while they were supposed to be going to sleep. One tent couldn't quite themselves down. In the morning, the routine is Chiefs take down their tent before we wake up the kids so we can help the kids pack up their stuff and take their tents down. But some of the girls were complaining that we were being too loud so we stopped and then waited until all of their stuff was packed up before we finished packing up our tent. They weren't happy about it but they got the point. It was a good lesson for them.
Friday I celebrated my 25th birthday at work. My kids sang to me in the morning and then the whole camp sang to me at dinner. It was nice.
Saturday we did more pack out stuff all day. We put the tents back up so they could dry out since it had rained Thursday night. And the kids washed the rest of the gear and packed up all of the food. In the afternoon we worked on packing their clothing. It was an incredibly long day, I think every kid complained at some point. I think we might have a little bit more stuff to do for packout tomorrow but then I think we're done.
I've spent my T.O. getting stuff I need for the river trip and speaking of that I really do need to pack.
This week is going to be pretty busy again with things happening at camp and we leave for the river on Friday. 5 days on the Suwannee River. It should be really good for the kids!
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Living the good life
Last week was the beginning of new employee orientation. By beginning I mean 50 hours out of 142 hours that we have to complete. First Aid, CPR and PAR (Protective Action Response) were last week. PAR is required by DJJ, it’s a course that teaches us how to verbally de-escalate kids if they are escalating into a crisis and if that doesn’t work and they become combative or aggravated how to defend myself and protect them at the same time using physical interventions, super intense. This week is computer reading. I have to sit at a computer for about 3 days worth of reading and taking tests.
Over the weekend I didn’t do a lot, trying to use my free time to relax before I start work.
Friday afternoon after we had finished our PAR testing Tiffany and I went to this super cute café in Inverness called the Cockadoodle Café. There were so many cute old people that all seemed to know each other. That night I went with some co-workers to an Irish Pub in Crystal River called Burkes. They had a really awesome selection of beer, some from CA, none from Humboldt though.
Saturday I spent the day watching Grey’s Anatomy, Friday Night Lights and Twin Peaks. I’m so excited I’m almost done watching Twin Peaks!
Sunday, Tiffany and I went to a Calvary Church in Inverness, it was interesting.
Then we drove to St. Pete’s Beach in St. Petersburg. It took us a bit longer to get to the beach than we had planned since we got a little lost but I have now seen Tropicana Field where the Rays play from every angle. I've now been to the Gulf! Oh and according to the guy I sat next to on the plane from San Antonio to Tampa the waves in the Gulf are only really big during a storm. So you can't surf in the Gulf. You have to go to the East Coast for that.
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| Florida Gulf |
The rainy season has also ended in Florida so we should have a lot more days that look like this! And less thunderstorms.
This Sunday if we have it off Tiffany and I are going to try to find a Gospel Church. I'm super excited!
The rest of this week I have more training but hopefully I will get to start working next week, I've been assigned to a group and a football team for the Staff Super Bowl which is in January. (The football game was the talk of the office today, it's all I heard about from lunch until we left, should be a lot of fun though, staff against staff.)
P.S. I know what my address is so if you would like it please send me a private message.
Monday, September 26, 2011
First weekend in Florida
I flew into Tampa on Thursday night after circling over the Gulf for 20 minutes due to the airport being temporarily shut down because of the massive thunder showers happening all over the Tampa area. I spent the next day getting a drug test and doing paperwork and then I was free for the weekend. I spent the weekend in Jacksonville with Sarah having fun and reminiscing about all the crazy things we did at Cottey.
We ate boiled peanuts that we bought from some guy on the side of the road. They were actually super good better than I thought. And stopped at Sarah's Grandpa's house for lunch, it was super awesome to see him and his wife again! After napping we went bowling and had an exciting bright pink bowling ball.
And then Sarah and I got kind of sad that even our combined score couldn't beat Daniel her roommate.
I got to watch my first ever Florida Gators game. It's a bit blurry but that's how I see football. Blurry and not something exciting to watch.
I guess they won 41 to 10 or something like that. Daniel was happy. Sarah and I were happy because we had this. Captain Jack's Nutty Brother. Chocolatey, Peanut Buttery, Ice Creamy deliciousness.
Sunday we spent a few hours at the beach. This was the second time I've experienced the Atlantic Ocean but the first time I've ever swam in the ocean. It was so warm! Kind of gross though since it was hot out as well. Getting in the water didn't really feel like I was cooling off.
Jacksonville was fun! I look forward to going back now that I only live 3 hours from Sarah!
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| They look like slugs |
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| Yup that's right I'm just hanging out in the ocean and it's warm! |
Fun facts about Florida
Since I have become a Floridian I thought I would share some facts about my new state.
I sadly can't give you any fun facts about where I am living because so far I haven't been able to find any. So here's what I do know.
Lecanto where I'm actually living is a suburb of Beverly Hills, FL and has a population of 5,161.
I am working in Floral City with a population of 4,989.
Inverness, FL is the county seat of Citrus County and has a population of 7,210 (Fun Fact: Inverness has approximately 42 churches, welcome to the Bible Belt!)
- In 1513, Ponce de Leon land in Florida and names it La Florida ("Flowery Land") (I haven't actually seen any flowers yet)
- Florida became the 27th state on March 3, 1845
- It's nicknamed the "Sunshine State" (So far there has just been a lot of rain, it's still hurricane season so we're still in the rainy season)
- Florida produces about 75% of the U.S. oranges and accounts for about 40% of the world's orangejuce supply.
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| Not the tallest tree |
- Highest natural point is 345 feet near Lakewood in Walton County (to put that in some perspective, the tallest tree in the world is a Coast Redwood at approximately 379 feet, this tree is taller than the highest point in Florida. Poor Florida, you just can't compete).
- Florida is the 4th largest state with almost 19 million residents.
- The Florida population of over 65 in 2003 was 2,897,383, 17% of the total population.
- As of 2009 there were believed to be about 1.3 million wild alligators in Florida.
I sadly can't give you any fun facts about where I am living because so far I haven't been able to find any. So here's what I do know.
Lecanto where I'm actually living is a suburb of Beverly Hills, FL and has a population of 5,161.
I am working in Floral City with a population of 4,989.
Inverness, FL is the county seat of Citrus County and has a population of 7,210 (Fun Fact: Inverness has approximately 42 churches, welcome to the Bible Belt!)
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